It’s official! MDCPS’s students must wear a mask at schools facilities

DORAL, FL – MDCPS’s students are now required to use a face mask while at schools facilities for the upcoming school year scheduled to begin on August 23rd.

The decision came after a heated debate that has been carrying on for weeks within the education community at Miami-Dade County Public Schools where there were both detractors and followers of implementing a mask mandate in the midst of a new outburst of the coronavirus pandemic. 

But despite the pressures of both Florida Governor, Ron DeSantis, and the parents who are against making the use of a mask mandatory, Superintendent Alberto Carvalho has remained firm in his position of enforcing such mandate as he confirmed it during his opening of schools address where he stated that he won’t pay any attention to threats on school funding. 

On Wednesday, after much speculation and expectation from parents, the school board finally announced the approval of a mask mandate for MDCPS’s students following Broward County Public Schools that implemented a mask mandate last week for teachers and students. 

“Today, I received messages from three former State Board of Education members, including two chairs, asking me to do the right thing. If the consequence at any point in my career is a threat to my own position, it is OK,” Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said as parents against the measure gathered outside Miami-Dade school board’s administration building Wednesday waving anti-mask signs. 

And the Superintendent could face sanctions for his decision as Florida’s Board of Education voted unanimously Tuesday for the Department of Education to further investigate two school districts, including Broward County Public Schools, for not allowing opt-out for parents who don’t want their children wearing masks.

“They know that child better than anyone, they know what the conversations are with the child’s physicians,” Commissioner Richard Corcoran said Wednesday. “It should be kept amongst themselves and they should make that decision and should be respected.”

About this, Miami-Dade County Mayor, Daniella Levine Cava, twitted a statement on Wednesday approving the decision of making the use of face masks mandatory for MDCPS’s students.

“I applaud the Miami-Dade School Board and Superintendent Alberto Carvalho for following the science and putting the health and wellbeing of our children first. Wearing a mask is one of the simplest tools we have to stop the spread and protect the lives and livelihood of those in our community – particularly for those not able to be vaccinated,” reads part of the statement. 

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